Gamers who RV / Trailer / 5th Wheel / Camp / Glamp

Unfortunately, this past weekend was probably our last camping trip for this season. The weather here usually allows for more, but we have plans for the next few weekends.

We stayed at Afton Landing, a small Corps of Engineers spot about 25-30 minutes from our house. It's usually really quiet with just a few campers, but this weekend it was packed. I think we got the last RV/Trailer spot. They have a small boat ramp there and there were at least 10 trucks with boat trailers compared to the normal 2 or 3 when we got up Saturday morning.

The weather was cool, but not cold and the leaves are turning; it was a relaxing autumn weekend. WANT MOAR! Or at least a real real mild November/December.

-BEP

Sydhart wrote:

Awesome thread. It might be fun for people to list their favorite areas. For me it would be Ozark National Scenic Riverways in SE Missouri. You can literally pack up a canoe or kayak and hit one of the rivers and just float and camp on any sandbar you want as it's all National Forest.

That sounds wonderful. How long do you usually stay out there when you go?

The lakes and rivers around here are rather dirty. There are parts of the Illinois River east of here that are semi-clear, though. So many float trips and so few memories...

There's a spot on the Illinois where everyone pulls over and jumps off a cliff. Lots of drunk folks lined up to jump while screaming and hollering, usually with their beer still in their hand. Good times? Maybe.

Speaking of kayaks, "some day" when we get a bigger trailer/5th Wheel and a truck, we'd like to get a pair of kayaks. A lot of the places we stay are good kayak spots.

-BEP

bepnewt wrote:

Speaking of kayaks, "some day" when we get a bigger trailer/5th Wheel and a truck, we'd like to get a pair of kayaks. A lot of the places we stay are good kayak spots.

-BEP

On this note, I sidestepped the need for a bigger vehicle/trailer/roofrack by getting an inflatable kayak. Any time I'm going car camping, I toss it in the car.

No good for white-water, but perfect for tame off-shore or lake paddling with the family.

I'm getting experience with something new!

On Friday I noticed that the milk for my cereal was noticeably warmer than usual so I opened up the fridge and freezer to see what was going on. The freezer had about an inch of water in the bottom. Oh.

After testing the thermistor with a multimeter and finding it could still detect the temperature reliably, I opened the access panel outside and immediately smelled ammonia. Problem found. RV fridges cost $1500-2000. A new cooling system plus labor costs about that much too. Screw that! We're going with a residential fridge of about the same physical size for around $400.

Removing the old fridge involved turning off propane and unhooking/capping it, doing the same with the 12v connection, and unplugging the 120v. Then I removed the 8 screws holding the beast in place, and lifted/shimmied it out of position. It juuust squeezed out of our door, and is currently still smelling up the yard waiting for the new one to arrive (Wednesday) so it can be hauled away.

Removing it revealed a damp (due to the ammonia leak) plywood platform on top of some 2x4 scrap. I took that out, and will be replacing it with a new one. Today I'm sealing up the vent panels in the back of the cabinet with some painted thin plywood. Tomorrow I'll be modifying the cabinet opening and constructing a new platform as the new appliance is a bit taller and wider. It can still fit in our door with its doors off, so we won't have to do the typical RVer "bring it in the window and no I'm not kidding" thing.

This event was made all the more interesting by the truck being in the shop to get new transmission pump seals and gaskets. We couldn't have gone out for a new one even if a close size were locally available (it wasn't). At least we have a dorm-size fridge in the very back where we can keep essentials. It'll be great once I get the replacement main fridge in, as we hated the RV one anyway. Residential have more room for their size and are more efficient - though they aren't dual fuel.

Jonman wrote:
bepnewt wrote:

Speaking of kayaks, "some day" when we get a bigger trailer/5th Wheel and a truck, we'd like to get a pair of kayaks. A lot of the places we stay are good kayak spots.

-BEP

On this note, I sidestepped the need for a bigger vehicle/trailer/roofrack by getting an inflatable kayak. Any time I'm going car camping, I toss it in the car.

No good for white-water, but perfect for tame off-shore or lake paddling with the family.

[mind-blown.gif]

(in my best Carson voice) "They make inflatable kayaks? I did not know that."

Holy Spicoli, that would have NEVER crossed my mind that they make such a thing. I don't know why it wouldn't - they make tubes, rafts, etc. Researching will commence! Well, tonight, it will. If you have any hints on what I should look for, etc., please let me know. We'd be on small rivers and lakes that have submerged trees so a bottom that won't pop easily would be a must.

Even with a new truck and trailer/5th wheel some day, I was worried about where kayaks would go. Today, they could go on the roof of Kit's SUV. This sounds like the perfect solution for now AND later!

Thanks, Jonman.

-BEP

LouZiffer wrote:

I'm getting experience with something new!

Well, new can be good, right? Right?

Sorry to hear about the problem, but glad you got a resolution that you like better than what you had.

What will you do when you travel - put all the perishables in the dorm fridge, or can the 5th wheel keep an electric only house fridge running while it's on the road? I have a followup question after I hear what your plan is...

Kit read this thread this weekend and had questions about how you guys do your 5th wheel living. I'll prompt her again sometime to ask what they were again and post them here when I remember. She likes watching several YouTube channels about people who full-time so what you guys do fascinates her.

-BEP

Jonman wrote:
bepnewt wrote:

Speaking of kayaks, "some day" when we get a bigger trailer/5th Wheel and a truck, we'd like to get a pair of kayaks. A lot of the places we stay are good kayak spots.

-BEP

On this note, I sidestepped the need for a bigger vehicle/trailer/roofrack by getting an inflatable kayak. Any time I'm going car camping, I toss it in the car.

No good for white-water, but perfect for tame off-shore or lake paddling with the family.

I really want to get an Orukayak (origami kayak). I became aware of them once I started working at West Marine.

IMAGE(https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0182/8165/t/36/assets/kayak-anim-v6.gif)

I'm pretty set with a lot of equipment to camp and tow the boat my dad and I made with my Tacoma. The last thing I need to get is a nice tent, and I think I'm gonna go canvas with a Kodiak Canvas tent (the ten by ten one). I wouldn't mind having one of those kayaks either.

I did find the best camp chair ever. It folds up really nice and is very comfortable and sturdy. It's a GCI Outdoor Pico arm chair.

IMAGE(https://newcontent.westmarine.com/content/images/catalog/large/16652331_LRG.jpg)

bepnewt wrote:

Holy Spicoli, that would have NEVER crossed my mind that they make such a thing. I don't know why it wouldn't - they make tubes, rafts, etc. Researching will commence! Well, tonight, it will. If you have any hints on what I should look for, etc., please let me know. We'd be on small rivers and lakes that have submerged trees so a bottom that won't pop easily would be a must.

I didn't do a whole lot of research, but what I'll tell you is that there are a lot of options out there, from "child's toy" up to "serious sportsman". Aquaglide is the brand I have, and they have a wide range of styles/sizes available.

For what it's worth, the one i got (and linked upthread) has a pretty tough vinyl bottom. I launch off rocky/shell beaches all the time, and haven't had an issue. It handles surprisingly well, though if you're really looking for performance, you're going to pay a premium for an inflatable that'll match a hardshell.

I'm kind of considering picking up a single-seat version for when I want to go out for a paddle by myself - my 2.5 person one handles much less well with only me in it, and if there's a stiff breeze, it needs that second butt and paddle to keep it from being a sail.

****

My old camp chair broke, so I replaced it with a ROCKING chair.

IMAGE(https://www.rei.com/media/aaf170c5-81bf-436d-8146-bf41b966a4b5?size=784x588)

bepnewt wrote:

What will you do when you travel - put all the perishables in the dorm fridge, or can the 5th wheel keep an electric only house fridge running while it's on the road? I have a followup question after I hear what your plan is...

Kit read this thread this weekend and had questions about how you guys do your 5th wheel living. I'll prompt her again sometime to ask what they were again and post them here when I remember. She likes watching several YouTube channels about people who full-time so what you guys do fascinates her.

-BEP

We never used propane while traveling, so it's going to be the same as before. A full fridge/freezer that's kept closed is very well insulated and will keep food cold for at least a day or two. When we travel, it's usually no more than 250 miles per day and no more than 2 days between destinations (boondocking in a parking lot overnight on the way). We also have a 5000W generator and a 28 gallon fuel tank for it if we decide to get extra adventurous - though I'm going to need to remove varnish from the carburetor and change the oil in that thing before we use it again.

There are also many folks who run battery banks which they keep charged with solar. Those will run a slim apartment refrigerator through an inverter. If you watch your usage and the weather cooperates you can run the fridge on a schedule off grid until your batteries age too much. Maybe that'll be a project for me some years in the future. I've helped friends build their own, but the weight/cost/tech make it more of an enthusiast project. It won't save anybody money right now!

bepnewt wrote:
MaxShrek wrote:

Totally off topic, but where is the truck driver thread? I can't find it anywhere.

This one?

-BEP

Yes, thank you!

How did I miss this thread?

My wife and I have been camping since we got married. As of this year we are on our fourth camper. We started with a tent, moved to an awesome popup (it had a slide!), bought a nice used pull behind from a friend, traded that for a Cougar bunkhouse pull behind, and, this year, upgraded to a fifth wheel (Reflection 367 BHS). I don't know if you can call it camping anymore but we do love it.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/Yko4hqi.jpg)

This year we took it on a three week trip from PA to the Florida Keys and back. Eight of us (my family and our friends' family). It was one hell of an adventure and just solidified how much I like the hobby.

bepnewt wrote:

(in my best Carson voice) "They make inflatable kayaks? I did not know that."

I actually purchased two of them from Amazon this year. They were cheap ($80 and now they are even cheaper). I can easily store them in my camper so they will be my companions for any future camping trips. Here's a mini-movie/review of our experience with just one of them. Short review: much better quality than I expected and so, so convenient to store!

fuzzyslug wrote:
bepnewt wrote:

(in my best Carson voice) "They make inflatable kayaks? I did not know that."

I actually purchased two of them from Amazon this year. They were cheap ($80 and now they are even cheaper). I can easily store them in my camper so they will be my companions for any future camping trips. Here's a mini-movie/review of our experience with just one of them. Short review: much better quality than I expected and so, so convenient to store!

That Chinook Jonman linked above looks oh--so-sweet, but this one is more like what we need. Before dropping the big moneys on a nice one, a $75 one is a perfect entry point to see if we really do want one, er, 2. We'll probably get a pair of these 1-person inflatables.

I'll check out the video now.

Putting our pic here so I can change the thread pic.
IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/XPJiu8z.jpg)

-BEP

fuzzyslug wrote:

How did I miss this thread?

My wife and I have been camping since we got married. As of this year we are on our fourth camper. We started with a tent, moved to an awesome popup (it had a slide!), bought a nice used pull behind from a friend, traded that for a Cougar bunkhouse pull behind, and, this year, upgraded to a fifth wheel (Reflection 367 BHS). I don't know if you can call it camping anymore but we do love it.

What a camping life journey, F-Slug. I haven't seen a popup with a slide before. We borrowed a popup years ago and were totally amazed at how much room it had once popped. It was great for a weekend getaway and light enough that Kit's Ford Escape could pull it no problem. It was a basic one - nothing like the beast-mode popup Serengeti has.

The 5th Wheels you and Lou are pulling are freaking crazy huge. After I post this, I'm going to have Kit look at the Grand Design site to ogle over the pics of that Reflection. We've gone inside some big 5th Wheels ( and even some Class A's ) just to gawk, but I can't imagine having/pulling one. Between the price of the 5th Wheel and the price of the truck to pull it, I'd never pay those babies off. We're pretty sure that 30' is about the sweet spot for us. If I can find one that an F-150 ( or like truck ) can pull without worry when we're ready to upgrade, I'll be happy. When the time comes, I'll figure out what makes sense instead of looking at what trucks can do today. We're probably 5-7 years out so I'm forcing myself not to do the research now or I may end up doing something stupid...

I'm going to change the topic pic now and then, grabbing scenic pics from the thread.

-BEP

Sydhart wrote:

Awesome thread. It might be fun for people to list their favorite areas. For me it would be Ozark National Scenic Riverways in SE Missouri. You can literally pack up a canoe or kayak and hit one of the rivers and just float and camp on any sandbar you want as it's all National Forest. Most of the rivers are spring fed so the water is crystal clear. There are tons of fish and wildlife and the scenery is beautiful with tons of cliffs and springs feeding into the rivers. There's also many well maintained camping/rest areas.

Our "go-to" spot is at Lake Eufala near Eufala, OK. It's within 2 hours, which is the range we like to stay in. They have multiple campgrounds. There are a couple great spots near the lake that don't have sewer and some nice spots at a different area that do have sewer. We really like taking walks and there's no shortage of place to walk in that area. My uncle has a cabin on the lake so we can jaunt on over there to visit or fish, etc. since he has a boat.

Afton Landing is a place real close to the house for the times we don't want to go far. It's by a good fishing river but doesn't have a lot of sites. No sewer on any of the spots and the sites aren't that level, but the price is right. I think it's like $14 a night?

There are maybe 3 other state park areas we've been to and they've all been good.

-BEP

bepnewt wrote:

What a camping life journey, F-Slug. I haven't seen a popup with a slide before. We borrowed a popup years ago and were totally amazed at how much room it had once popped. It was great for a weekend getaway and light enough that Kit's Ford Escape could pull it no problem. It was a basic one - nothing like the beast-mode popup Serengeti has.

Journey is a great word. A bunch of campers and trucks (3rd one of those) with mistakes along the way (my first real truck was a used turd, the Keystone Cougar we bought had issue after issue). Here's my old popup. I still miss it. Loved that thing. It held its value surprisingly well.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/wMtUusu.jpg)

Serengeti, that popup looks amazing. I loved the flexibility of our popup but yours is just off the charts.

bepnewt wrote:

The 5th Wheels you and Lou are pulling are freaking crazy huge. After I post this, I'm going to have Kit look at the Grand Design site to ogle over the pics of that Reflection. We've gone inside some big 5th Wheels ( and even some Class A's ) just to gawk, but I can't imagine having/pulling one. Between the price of the 5th Wheel and the price of the truck to pull it, I'd never pay those babies off. We're pretty sure that 30' is about the sweet spot for us. If I can find one that an F-150 ( or like truck ) can pull without worry when we're ready to upgrade, I'll be happy. When the time comes, I'll figure out what makes sense instead of looking at what trucks can do today. We're probably 5-7 years out so I'm forcing myself not to do the research now or I may end up doing something stupid...

I'm going to change the topic pic now and then, grabbing scenic pics from the thread.

-BEP

It's definitely a big investment. We did a bit of a leapfrog thing between campers and trucks. We always needed a truck big enough to pull the next one.

Without going to deep in the weeds, there are a lot of F-150 class trucks with a lot of towing capacity nowadays. Your real limiting factor is pin weight (stability, braking, and wear and tear on your vehicle are also factors you need to at least consider). Most 1/2 ton trucks just can't take the weight that most fifth wheels put on the back tires. Grand Design does sell a 150 line of fifth wheels but they are generally going to be designed for 2 people. If you have kids, your options tend to be limited. A 30' pull behind is probably a good sweet spot. They can be plenty big and still safe to pull with a decent truck.

When you do shop (in 5-7 years), make sure you return to this thread and share!

We're finally on our first trip this year - better late then never! It was a busy first part of the year so we weren't able to get away.

We're at Sequoya State Park, east of Wagoner, OK. We're at the first campsite on the left if you take a left at the loop fork:
Closeup of Campground

Normally, you don't take a left at the loop fork because it's a one-way loop. Th water is up over the road on the bottom side of the loop right now.

We had some devastating rains and flooding in Oklahoma this year. The water is still incredibly high in most places. This was the side of the road on the way to the park:
IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/pUhOuqT.jpg)

We got here Wednesday night and have basically relaxed the whole time. Well, until I had to log into work this morning and do 45 minutes of grunt work.

I just made Kit her coffee with the french press and Kit is making omelettes in our portable omelette maker that she loves so much. Except for the work thing, it's another perfect morning in the camper.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/GtSuK8Q.jpg)

The camp host has mentioned in the past that he feeds the deer although he's not supposed to. Because of that, we get deer that like to hang around. This one is really into football. Maybe he's scouting the neighbors for some semi-pro under 15 league:
IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/9beIV5O.jpg)

Today, we're driving to a sort-of-nearby town to look at a house. We're considering moving so want to see what our options are.

Also sometime today, we're going to do what is in the followup post I make to this one! Should be fun.

What have you guys been doing this year?

-BEP

fuzzyslug wrote:
bepnewt wrote:

(in my best Carson voice) "They make inflatable kayaks? I did not know that."

I actually purchased two of them from Amazon this year. They were cheap ($80 and now they are even cheaper). I can easily store them in my camper so they will be my companions for any future camping trips. Here's a mini-movie/review of our experience with just one of them. Short review: much better quality than I expected and so, so convenient to store!

We bit the bullet a few weeks ago on a pair on 1-seaters. We'll be trying them out today. So far, we have the same exact review. Storage is so easy since they come in a bag with a handle and the quality was above what I expected when we inflated one in the living room. We didn't inflate the second bladder at the time.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/RcG7XEx.jpg)

Can't wait to hit the water with them. It was too choppy here yesterday.

-BEP

A couple more pics from today:

The golf course that is in the same park. The bad part is the main part of the flooding we had in OK was 3-4 weeks ago and water is still like this.
IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/WJkN96X.jpg)

Kit in her Kayak then me in mine. We're floating where a beach used to be.
IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/nwy1puq.jpg)

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/w5pjXlb.jpg)

The kayaks after packing them up in their bags. Kayaks, paddles, backrest, and pump in each bag.
IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/6tU1ulV.jpg)

-BEP

That flooding is crazy! Looks like you all are having fun! I'm looking forward to some cabin camping at East Lake in Oregon next month and then I'm taking 3 weeks off in August/September to camp and fish for salmon at the beach in Newport. I just ordered a Kodiak Canvas tent and am really excited about it. It's the 10x10 deluxe. I'll ultimately get the vestibule and floor liner too!

I just got back from a cabin on my own private pirate's island!

Kind of.

State park over here has a teeny plot of land with a single cabin on an island a 5 minute paddle across a bay. The island is named after an 19th century pirate so it totally counts! There are a couple of other private residences on the tiny island, so it's not totally "private", but it counts.

Only way onto the island is by "human powered watercraft" - we kayaked over in the inflatable, there was some excitement when we discovered punctures as we were about to leave, paddled back across as it visibly deflated, so I've got some repairs to do!

The wildlife was nuts, there was a breeding pair of bald eagles hanging out literally over our deck. Who were constantly being harassed by noisy sandpipers. We paddled through an entire bob of seals (yes, that's the collective noun), counted about a dozen of them, heads popping up on all sides of our kayak, checking us out.

Details for PNW folk who want reservations...

IMAGE(https://cloudflare1.360gigapixels.com/pano/washington_state_parks_foundation/00831072_DeceptionPass-170-jpg/equirect_crop_3_1/6.jpg)

IMAGE(https://live.staticflickr.com/6149/5976383115_f8b1f0ba53_b.jpg)

Newt, so glad you like the Kayaks. I purchased PA permits for mine. They hit the water once already this year. I’m really looking forward to using them more.

You need permits for boats in PA?

Malor wrote:

You need permits for boats in PA?

Yep. It’s called a launch permit. I think it was $44 for two kayaks for two years.

Anyone know the kayak rules for VA or TN? I’m vacationing there the next couple of weeks.

fuzzyslug wrote:

Newt, so glad you like the Kayaks. I purchased PA permits for mine. They hit the water once already this year. I’m really looking forward to using them more.

We still love them.

It's been over a year and 2 months since the last post. Covid really put a damper on our glamping this year because of the park closings.

We've only been twice so far. Two weekends ago, we went to a new place (for us) that was decent. They had some of the tent spots mixed in with the RV spots. There was more room between spots than the other places we've been, too. That was nice.

Last night, we booked reservations for Oct 15 - Oct 18 at a place we haven't glamped before. The places we normally go are all booked or mostly booked leaving only the "worst" sites available. Then again, relaxing at the "worst" site is better than being at home!

We hope to get some Kayaking in on that trip. The one a couple weeks ago wasn't a place we could kayak.

How's the RV/Camping life going for you guys?

-BEP

I had a lot of my carefully placed reservations over the summer get covid-cancelled, but I've been getting out in the State Parks since they re-opened mid-summer.

Now starting to look at setting reservations for next summer.

Certainly something I don't enjoy about living in such a populated area is how crowded outdoor recreation is here. Last winter I was angling hard to reserve a forest service lookout, reservations open at 7am 6 months prior to the reservation date, and after a month and a half I still couldn't land it. I'll try again this winter.

We picked up a 28' travel trailer in May and have had it out for a few trips. Weekend before last we were at Mary Hill State Park in Washington, which gave us a much needed release from being stuck at home. With a 2 y/o and an 8 month old pup, it's hard to get out and do a ton of activities while we're out there. Our older boys (5 and 8) still had a good time though.

We'll probably try to get a few coast trips in through the winter. I was looking forward to sneaking off to nearby Detroit lake occasionally this winter, but after the fire I don't think there will be a good opportunity for that this winter.

Mary Hill looks like a nice place according to Google Maps. I'm glad you got to get away and relax.

A coast trip sounds great. That's not something we can do here in Oklahoma.

We're going to reserve down at Broken Bow lake for the 2024 eclipse. You can book 11 months in advance so I have reminders in my phone. It's a beautiful area.

-BEP

While out fishing and crabbing, we did use our 2+ weeks of reservations at South Beach campground in Newport here in August and September. It went fine. Hopefully the showers can be open next year. We were there the night of the windstorms that started all the fires in Oregon. That next morning, everything was red like Mars. We fished that day but then left the boat and tent at the campsite to go home for a couple days because it did NOT feel safe with that wind.

bepnewt wrote:

We're going to reserve down at Broken Bow lake for the 2024 eclipse. You can book 11 months in advance so I have reminders in my phone. It's a beautiful area.

That will be awesome. We were fortunate to not have to go anywhere for the 2017 eclipse. My in-laws, who were full time Fifth Wheelers at the time, had a spot at a local RV park around that day. Unfortunately they didn't reserve soon enough, and had to pull up stakes for the one night before the eclipse, due to folks coming into town to watch it. The RV park was super cool though and let them park in the temp parking at registration, and they stayed at our house for the night.

Having the coast only an hour away is a huge bonus for where we live. I can go skiing in one direction, and hang out on the beach in the other. Of course, it's generally not a very warm beach. My heart is still in Montana for favorite places to live, but Oregon is pretty good too.

We have a lot of Oregon RV'ing ideas for the future. Oregon has some really beautiful areas on the east side of the state that not as many folks get out to. Plus I may start getting back into hunting, and it would be a good excuse to scout things out. We are also considering a cross-country trip to Georgia for my wife's Grandmothers birthday in a year or so.

tuffalobuffalo wrote:

While out fishing and crabbing, we did use our 2+ weeks of reservations at South Beach campground in Newport here in August and September.

Next time we're down that way I'll have to pull in and scout out that campground. I'm not sure that they have any sites that will accommodate our trailer length, truck included, at about 50 feet. Nothing available recently anyways, when I was looking for open spots a few weeks ago.